Malta

Malta! Hands down the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen. For history lovers like Cameron, Malta is engrossed in it. During World War II, Malta was the most bombed place in the war. At a church called Mosta a group of people had gathered inside to find shelter from the bombing. While seeking shelter and praying a bomb fell through the roof of the church and did not explode. A replica of this bomb sits in the church today as a reminder of divine protection that is unfortunately not attributed to the true Savior’s hand. Malta is also found in the New Testament. In Acts 27 and 28 Paul is sailing as a Roman prisoner headed to Rome. While sailing, a storm arises and the ship is destroyed leaving Paul, the other prisoners and the Roman guards stranded on a foreign beach they come to know as Malta! We actually stayed at a hotel on St. Paul’s Bay where it is believed their ship crashed. We went and visited the old cave area Roman guards used as their prison and where they believe Paul was held. We went to Mdina and saw the city that was very likely the same place Paul would have come to heal Publius’s ill Father. There was so much history and so much of it coming to life before your eyes as you walked, saw and relived what once was. It was by far the best trip we’ve ever taken and the most beautiful place we’ve ever seen. Oh and just to prove scripture’s truth once more: Taken from Acts 28:2 describing the people of Malta, “The local people showed us extraordinary kindness…” They still do! (Picture of cave above)
Malta provided a wonderful time of refreshment and allowed us to meet Roma team members from all over Europe. I cannot fully explain how wonderful it is to be at the beginning of this journey and hear stories from the people who have been running this race much longer. To hear of Roma who not only are transformed by the Word of God but who then comprehend what Christ commands and they in turn “GO” and become a city on a hill for those around them is so cool! To hear light jokes of those who have had a dollar stolen but not their smile or their call, gave me little boosts of encouragement. All in all I looked around the room, I listened to testimonies and I sat honored to be in the presence of those I look up to and hope to learn from. A group from New Orleans came to provide a vacation Bible school for the kids and Micah and Ben had an awesome time!! Some from the group brought a couple of treasures for our family from friends back in New Orleans and this gave us the opportunity to give Micah the perfect birthday present: Blueberry Pop tarts!! In addition they brought a chocolate cake mix and chocolate icing so that I didn’t have to make his cake from scratch on Monday. These were beautiful treasures to our family and Micah’s birthday was wonderful! We just want to make sure they all know how lucky we felt to get those things and how sweet those gifts were. (Picture and evidence of the excited boys with a pack of gushers above)
Another beauty about Malta is that almost everyone speaks English. It was spoiling to just speak! To say things in the moment, to tell jokes and laugh, to share my heart without searching for words and most of all to share Christ with others again! If you asked me what the hardest thing is about living in Bulgaria, I would say hands down it is the inability to tell people about what Christ has done in my life. To feed a Roma man today and not be able to sit and talk with him about bread that feeds the soul rather than his stomach kills me! To hand a tissue to an old lady who then wants to have a full blown conversation with me hurts my heart to only reply “I don’t understand” and all of this to walk away from these people who possibly think I am a nice person rather than it being known that it is Christ who is compelling me to love them devastates me! Don’t take this treasure for granted if you live in a place that you can speak fluently in! When your tongue disappears all you will desire to do is tell people about Him! To see people daily in captivity and walk by knowing you have the key to set them free should make you never Shut Up!! Speak, Tell, and Love through Him and don’t sit silently. When your tongue disappears, your heart will explode within you begging to speak words of life to others! Please don’t take it for granted.
Please take a moment to pray for the salvation of Mike and Jacob. We were able to share Christ with them during our stay in Malta. Other members from the Roma team were able to share Christ with Maltese and if you’ll pray for their decisions I would appreciate it.

Trafficking Meeting

"For Rent" when we see a sign like this we think of apartments, houses, or a building for business. For some women "For Rent" is a sign they carry around on their chest, placed there by a pimp.
Saturday I went to a meeting that was held by a group of evangelical women from different back grounds. Some were social workers, others were lawyers, some were Americans and many were Bulgarians. Some were from Sofia and others traveled to Sofia from outside cities but all had a common interest: How does the Christian community help prevent trafficking in our area and help restore the women who want to get out? With every suggestion that was made, there were laws to be considered, there were financial burdens to be considered, and there was the topic of safety to be considered for workers and for the women who would flee.
Here are some of the things I learned and have taken away from this meeting:
Trafficking is a well organized network and most women are not taken by chance, it is planned or they are given to the network by family or friends who sale them. Some women, most with a back ground of childhood abuse, go into this field willingly with the expectation of doing it for a short time until they financially change their lives and can get out. Unfortunately for these women who willingly volunteer for this they don't get out and they don't make the money that is promised. They like the picture says they are "for rent" and will continued to be owned by someone else.

We learned of a 37 year old woman from northern Bulgaria that went to have coffee with her friend and he slipped something into her drink. When she woke up at the border of Greece, she had been sold by her friend to a pimp. This woman had a 13 year old son at home and was past the age that you would assume a victim would be taken. After some time she was able to escape and she came to a church in northern Bulgaria for help. The church did not know how to help her or how to provide the emotional restoration she would need and so a member of the church was at the meeting looking for resources. While the woman was sharing this story, another woman raised her hand and asked "Is this the same woman who escaped and seven men came and kidnapped her a second time?" My translator stopped and I didn't get to hear the answer but I was left with a deep sadness for whoever this woman was. I can't imagine how hard it would be to escape one time, much less ever get the chance to do it again.
Another woman raised her hand and was at the meeting looking to advocate help for a grandmother who had a grand daughter taken and exported to Germany on January 1. The grandmother had been to the police and to lawyers but had received no help. The meeting provided information on how to help this grandmother who had been previously told that "Your granddaughter is 21. She is of age to travel and should be able to take care of herself".
It was explained to us that many times police do not help and often close their eyes. Sometimes the police are given payment to close their eyes. The underground network of trafficking is well organized, well financed and supplied with lawyers and other officials that help keep the organization functioning.
Here are ways you can pray:
1. Pray for the laws to be changed in Bulgaria. Currently 14 is the age of consentual sex. This gives an older man the right to engage in activity that she would then have to prove is not welcomed. This age increase would also put a block on the child marriage market amongst the Roma.
2. Pray for churches in Bulgaria to see this problem and act. Many of the churches across all denominations turn an eye to this problem and don't believe it to be a problem until a prostitute comes to them for help or until it is one of their family members.
3. Pray for the court systems to not drag their feet when a woman is willing to testify and for the law to better define trafficking so loop holes can be minimized.
4. Pray for a Christian center to open in Bulgaria that will provide a safe house and rehabilitation emotionally and spiritually. There is currently only one place like this in Sofia and they only offer one month of free shelter and counseling.

It is my goal to attend these meetings and gather information and know how God can use me amongst the Roma to help prevent girls in the community from becoming potential victims.

The LORD guards the inexperienced...

"The LORD guards the inexperienced; I was helpless, and He saved me. Return to your rest, my soul, for the LORD has been good to you." Psalm 116:6-7

God saved me today from being a victim. God placed His hand over the hand of one who meant to do me harm and prevented his hand from evil...PRAISE BE TO OUR GOD!!
"The LORD protects you; the LORD is a shelter right by your side" Psalm 121:5
Thanks to the Lord who was clearly right by my side, I was not pick pocketed tonight.
We've been sick for the last two weeks and we have been couped up inside longer. We needed groceries and we needed to be outside and so we got dressed and got on the bus. The buses are at times super busy and at times very light, it's a gamble on what your bus will be like when it arrives. Our first bus was light and Ben talked in Bulgarian to three new friends he made! He made sure he told Cameron and I that he made "three" friends over and over and he was very very proud! Our second bus was very crowded and our family got divided up. I was with Ben and Cameron had Micah. Luckily I found Ben a seat and I stood in front of him as a shield from falling or being fallen on. As we rode people are smushed against you and I felt someones hands on my hips. I then felt as if those hands were trying to touch an inappropriate place and as I was registering what was going on I realized that my purse was in the area I felt the hands wondering around. I couldn't pull away because there were too many people smushing around me but I jerked as hard as I could and looked at the man and yelled "NEY" which is Bulgarian for No as loud as I could and over and over. I then apologized because that's what I do for some reason and the doors to the bus opened and he jumped off. I really was confused and shock and felt badly that I jumped on him until I looked down and realized my purse was completely open and he had indeed been digging in it! Then the rage filled me and I felt stupid for feeling bad for second guessing my instint that made me yell at him! Oh it was all so confusing and frusterating but God protected me, NOT ONE THING was missing out of my purse! My passport was right there, my wallet was right there and somehow he ended up with nothing but the flu because all of my snot tissue was also there!! We got to the mall and immediately found a corner to kneel down and praise God in! We were so thankful that what was intended to be our misfortune became our song because it confirmed the verses above that God is with us!
We got our groceries, we came home in a taxi that was honest, I got all the meat I needed at the market, and there were no stray dog attacks...It was a good night!

We are sorry there hasn't been any recent postings. We have all had our share of sickness these past two weeks and simply getting out of bed has been a challenge. I don't think we've been that sick as a family ever!
We are currently getting better one at a time and right now Micah would be the worst out of all of us. We have experienced our first bout with culture shock and with tears came smiles of God's comfort and goodness. The culture shock hit when the doctor prescribed medicines in the wrong dosage and for the wrong body part twice. Being sick and having to look up every medicine before giving it to our family was exhausting but God was good to show us the need for this and therefore we avoided potential problems.
Last week Bulgaria announced a flu epidemic for the area and this news only made me want to hole up in our apartment and not get sick again. I began to wonder if my obsession with my anti-germ campaign was more culture shock than anything and part of it was. I guess I was hesitant to put our trust in the medical care here again and wanted to avoid it as much as possible. God softened my heart and reminded me that we dwell under the shadow of His wings and Psalm 91 brought me hope and faith to step out into our lives here again. I got a text message this morning telling me that Micah's school is cancelled for the next two weeks due to the flu and a man from my Mom's church has offered to check all the medicine we're prescribed with and look it up and the correct dosages for us. God spoils us and is prompt to take care of all the details! I love Him so much and He amazes me all the time with His love and goodness!
So what does a family who is just about well do when they live under the shadow of His wings...Go Sledding for a little bit!! Don't worry we stayed warm and only outside for a little bit! The pack of stray dogs helped bring us inside!! EEk!
Love you~!

Reason 202 to visit the Zoo...Cotton Candy!!!

Now who wouldn't want to visit the zoo and eat cotton candy that is the size of your entire body?! Just another reason we love the zoo here in Sofia!
On another note, Cameron and I seem to be allergic to Bulgaria and keep suffering from allergies that make us feel horrible! Please pray that this will be resolved.
Since we are limited in our language we have tried to show God's glory in ways in which we live. We have language home work every meeting and part of our homework is to create sentences with the things we have learned. One word I learned this past week was "Love" in Bulgarian and what better sentance to write out than John 3:16:
"For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son so that who ever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life"
I translated this verse to the best of my ability and my language teacher was able to correct my translation with her favorite red pen and begin her unexpected travel through scripture. I will continue to follow her home work expectations by using scripture as my sentence structure and include my new bulgarian words I've learned.
Acts of kindness in this cold cultured climate is another way we are showing God's glory. It is amazing at the reaction you recieve when you simply hand someone on the street a tissue for their nose, give a piece of candy to someone sitting next to you on the metro, or simply smile and say hello in your broken Bulgarian.
Thank you for praying for us!
Jenn

The answer to how many deer are now in the zoo after last winter's stray dog attack...#3! Micah and I are happy to display that number in the picture above! =)

THE ZOO

Today was Micah's second day of school and it started off with the usual egg sandwich! He rode the school bus for the first time today and daddy rode with him. At first he was very shy and daddy said he just laid his head in his lap and seemed a little bit scared. Soon another boy got on the bus that Micah recognized from his classroom and Micah quickly warmed up. Cameron said soon after he was sitting in the back of the bus with his other "new" friends having fun. The pictures are above and Micah's friend, the boy sitting next to him in the picture is a Roma child! Isn't it cool how God works?!
When Cameron came home from dropping off Micah, Ben and I took daddy to the zoo! We have heard stories of the zoo but have not actually made it there. Last year the zoo lost their deer exhibit to a pack of stray dogs who broke in through a hole and ate all the deers! (actually one male survived) I wondered if they had been replaced this winter or not and unfortuately did not get to find out.
The zoo was massive and covered in snow. Alot of the animals were in indoor exhibits. The wolves were amazingly friendly and seem more like the dogs we're used to. They wagged their tails and begged for affection, unlike the stray dogs who roam around the streets outside the zoo. The lions and tigers were extremely loud when they roared and since we were indoors the sound threatened to burst one's ear drums! Only a bar keeps you arms length from touching their cage so eyes on children must be practiced diligently! A zoo keeper didn't make the job of warning children of danger very easy when he went past the bar and pet on the lion treating him more like an indoor pet kitty~ The whole experience was extremely cool and we only saw a small fraction of the zoo due to time restraints of needing to pick up Micah and go to language school. We hope to return tomorrow and take Micah and the sled! Two other things we noticed at the zoo: A stray dog is roaming around and so the deers should be warned! As seen in the above pictures...The zoo will feed the lions dead horses from the Roma and you can have a full experience of smelling their food and seeing them enjoy it. I don't believe we had the enjoyment of a dead horse but we did enjoy the left overs of another animal that the wolves and foxes were feasting on! Ben loved this! gross boy!

Wednesday

Micah starts school on Wednesday! I was so excited for this day, so excited for him, and now I am sitting on the couch crying! I want the desire of his heart to have friends to be fulfilled and I know he will be fine but I am wavering in my strenth. Today he watched a Bulgarian cartoon and called out to me from the bath tub that night "Mamo" which sounds like 'Mom-Mo' (means mom) and it was this moment in our day that I keep finding peace in. He is picking up Bulgarian everyday on his own and when he is in a class setting being taught the language I know he will thrive! It is important for him to go and it is equally important for me to let go and trust God. Pray for our family as we begin making life adjustments that will equip us for ministry in Bulgaria.